Chris Graham: WWE, not surprisingly, goes for the blood money

You shouldn’t have been surprised at the news that WWE would go through with its plans to hold a megashow in Saudi Arabia as scheduled on Nov. 2.

It’s all about the money, folks – reportedly, as much as $50 million per show over a 10-year period that could net WWE $1 billion.

The show, Crown Jewel, is a purchased show, meaning it’s not WWE renting a building and hoping to make money selling tickets, but rather, it’s the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in this case, paying WWE to book and stage the show.

For sake of getting some sense into what this means for WWE’s bottom line, the company grossed $151.7 million from the 384 live events that it held worldwide in 2017.

This show, and the one that WWE staged earlier in this year in Saudi Arabia, which was also a purchased show, are expected to generate a cool $100 million for WWE in 2018.

From two shows (!).

Now, sure, there’s the mess with the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, which the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is admitting today was a premeditated murder.

After first, it must be noted, claiming that Khashoggi had left its consulate in Turkey on his own, then conceded that he had died, but insisted his death was the result of a brawl that had erupted when he walked in the front door.

WWE’s corporate messaging, in press releases and talking points parroted by its talent in media interviews, has thrown out how other U.S. companies are continuing to do business in Saudi Arabia, so it’s not just us, not just WWE, and anyway, the murder of this journalist is by far not the only bad thing the Saudis are involved in now, so why all this negative attention now all the sudden?

Which, hey, good point. I mean, the Saudis were linked to the Sept. 11, 2001 hijackers, and we’ve been taking their blood money since.

Bringing up the question: why, indeed, is it this murder, among the thousands, that is the straw breaking the camel’s back?

Interesting question to ask. Kinda akin to, why did you wait for the near-fatal heart attack to lose weight and get in shape?

The issue with Saudi Arabia is, no question, bigger than WWE. America needs to rethink its relationship with the Kingdom.

That realization doe not absolve WWE of its individual responsibility to do the right thing.

WWE could have taken the lead in the debate over the future of U.S.-Saudi relations.

Instead, it’s continuing the status quo, turning a blind eye to atrocities in the interest of taking more of the Saudis’ blood money.

Shame.

Column by Chris Graham